Cate's Diary

I just crawled out of a rabbit hole searching for a craft basket to store my hearts in. I do not want to buy anything plastic if I can help it, but might need to buy some compartments & kit out one of the many baskets that I have hanging from the beams in our kitchen. I would enjoy making them even more if I could have them sorted out in colours & patterns & tools, uncut felt etc. I think I need to visit my crafty SIL & see what she has & maybe buy something from her if she will let me pay. She has an abundance of stuff. So much stuff! She also has one of my wall hangings that was left to my BIL & SIL. She was going to attach something onto the back of it so I could hang it, but I think I'll get it back & try doing it myself.
 
So nice when you can get things organized and can find just what you are looking for. I hope you find the perfect way to organize it all. Sounds fun :)
 
Thanks, Liza. I think I will try to adapt one of my cane baskets. I love having them hanging in the kitchen, but I am also trying hard to buy & waste less. It's hard to balance all of the things out especially when I also love having things organised. There is too much stuff in this world of ours. Currently, I have them sorted into empty golf ball boxes in a plastic tub I had already but it's not quite big enough & I also need to be able to see everything. I'll try a basket I think & maybe attempt to line it so that it looks nice. I would like to be able to have everything spread out so that I can see all the different colours & not have to open any boxes.
I had a really nice day yesterday at home with G. We were both a bit tired after golf on Saturday & we just had a nice quiet day at home. I didn't have any wine & stuck to my calories easily. We had grilled chicken breast, with a scrumptious salad & for dinner seafood risotto, followed by a fruit platter. BF was just toast.
Breakfast this morning was toast with hard-boiled eggs(1.5 each) heated in a curry sauce. Very yum.
Not sure about our meals today, but I know one will be venison liver with lots of veggies. G cooks it with some home-made Worcestershire sauce & greek yoghurt instead of cream & it's always delicious.
I ran out of one of my scripts so have to see a doctor today. I order them online usually but this one disappeared off my list.
 
Wow, G makes such delicious sounding things. I have never thought of a curry sauce for hard boiled eggs before. That sounds so good, and making your own Worcestershire sauce - I am in awe. The Worcestershire and Greek yogurt sauce sounds like something I need to try, too!

I saved interesting storage boxes from my mom's hoard, and they always come in handy. It's always shocking how much a new storage container costs, especially craft containers, so it's nice you can use some you already have or that your sister in law has. Finding the right container is always so satisfying. I hope you find yours!!
 
Nice to enjoy a quiet day at home especially with such a good cook in the house :)
I know what you mean about wanting to avoid buying more stuff to organize your crafts. Hopefully you can find some nice ways to do it without needing to buy anything. Nice job on skipping the wine again!
 
Thanks, Marsia, Liza & Em. I am so lucky that I don't have to cook. G is a fantastic cook & I am thoroughly spoiled. I think we eat more than I would if I was on my own & I know I wouldn't be as tempted to share a bottle of wine. We shared a nice bottle of a Spanish Tempranillo yesterday & I just logged everything for the day & only just scraped in. I must do that in advance every day. I won't have any wine today & probably not tomorrow either. I do allow a piccolo of bubbles after golf if I really feel like it, but I would like to see a drop on the scales again & there's only one way that's going to happen!
BF this morning was 2 GF seedy toasts, 1 with PB & the other 1/2 Vegemite & 1/2 Bon Maman cherry jam. I must buy some frozen berries so that I can have overnight-soaked oats more often. It would be a more nutritious option.
 
I have had a good day although I didn’t feel well. I had run out of one of my blood pressure meds at the weekend. I had to see the only doctor who was available but he had fragrance on. He said if I want to see him again to just ask reception to let him know & he’ll make sure he didn’t wear any. He seems very kind & thorough & we both think we’ll see him again.
I had little energy today but feel ok tonight. I took A for a walk after my very light lunch. I have hundreds of calories left & am not sure what I’ll have- maybe some fruit & some nuts.
Edit: I'm having half a kiwi fruit, some grapes, a little piece of beef jerky, 20g of macadamia nuts & a Medjool date.
My deficit for the day is 346. I'm happy with that.
 
Hope you feel better from the fragrance and high blood pressure, and so glad you got your prescription filled now. That's great you have a good back up doctor now, too. Bon Maman cherry jam sounds really good and like there is an interesting story behind the name. It's making me hungry for cherries! With the oats, do you eat raw soaked oats, or are you soaking them so they are faster cooking in the morning? I have a lot of oats and should do more with them. Glad you happily had a calorie deficit last night and hope you got really good rest. I had bad high blood pressure from this last move across the country, and wow did that knock me out. Hope you are feeling better today!! :grouphug:
 
It's sort of funny the doctor wouldn't just go fragrance free always as there are often sensitive people, but anyways, very nice that he will go without it by request!
I hope you're feeling better by now. Really nice job on the deficit. I'm sure having trouble with getting any deficit at all!
 
Marsia said:
Hope you feel better from the fragrance and high blood pressure, and so glad you got your prescription filled now. That's great you have a good back up doctor now, too. Bon Maman cherry jam sounds really good and like there is an interesting story behind the name. It's making me hungry for cherries! With the oats, do you eat raw soaked oats, or are you soaking them so they are faster cooking in the morning? I have a lot of oats and should do more with them. Glad you happily had a calorie deficit last night and hope you got really good rest. I had bad high blood pressure from this last move across the country, and wow did that knock me out. Hope you are feeling better today!! :grouphug:
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I do feel much better this morning, thanks M. I just soak the oats overnight with some chia & other seeds & some protein powder, and unsweetened almond milk & zap it in the microwave for 2 minutes, & top with a dollop of yoghurt & some dry-toasted flaked almonds & coconut. I'm taking a jar of Greek yoghurt with some of that today to have after golf, with half a kiwi fruit in it. It tasted nice but I hope the texture will be ok. My blood pressure has been under control for years now, with a combination of 2 meds but not taking this one for a couple of days did see it soar.
liza3 said:
It's sort of funny the doctor wouldn't just go fragrance free always as there are often sensitive people, but anyways, very nice that he will go without it by request!
I hope you're feeling better by now. Really nice job on the deficit. I'm sure having trouble with getting any deficit at all!
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None of the staff is meant to wear fragrance after my major reaction a couple of years ago. They have so much trouble keeping doctors that they probably wouldn't even ask. Most people just don't get it & it's unusual for anyone to be considerate.
It was good to have the deficit, Liza. No wine will do it. I have logged my day's food & am wearing my Fitbit. I only wear it on golf days now. I have a 500-calorie deficit with my 3 meals in there & nothing else. I just added a fruit platter after dinner with one ginger snap & a small piece of licorice & I still have a 335 deficit not taking into account my game of golf. That decided it for me. No wine today either!
 
Can I ask what type of oats you are using? Are they rolled oats or steel cut or instant? I really like this idea and want to copy you! Nice you keep having a big deficit and can have a nice snack for your last meal.
 
Rolled oats I think, but organic. I can eat them raw.
I didn’t eat all of my lunch as I didn’t feel particularly well so I’ll have the 20g of macadamias & cashews after dinner tonight. It was SO cold! I’m just so glad to be home. I think I had a personal worst score!
G has some pumpkin baking in the oven & he just said I had to come & have a look & I said I just couldn’t so he brought it to me. Oh, my! It looks & smells heavenly. I am very hungry. He makes a slurry of yoghurt, cummin, coriander turmeric Garam Marsala, sambal oelek, garlic & olive oil & bastes the pumpkin slices( skin on) & bakes in the oven for about 45 at 200oC. He doesn’t turn it. Yum!
 
Cate said:
Rolled oats I think, but organic. I can eat them raw.
I didn’t eat all of my lunch as I didn’t feel particularly well so I’ll have the 20g of macadamias & cashews after dinner tonight. It was SO cold! I’m just so glad to be home. I think I had a personal worst score!
G has some pumpkin baking in the oven & he just said I had to come & have a look & I said I just couldn’t so he brought it to me. Oh, my! It looks & smells heavenly. I am very hungry. He makes a slurry of yoghurt, cummin, coriander turmeric Garam Marsala, sambal oelek, garlic & olive oil & bastes the pumpkin slices( skin on) & bakes in the oven for about 45 at 200oC. He doesn’t turn it. Yum!
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I hope you're feeling better Cate. That pumpkin sounds so nourishing and wonderfully warming and yummy--I hope it helps you feel soooooo much warmer and better! I wonder if I could manage something like that--it sounds like something I might be able to do...
 
It's funny, Vic & Liza because he already had dinner plated up & we didn't have any last night. We'll have some with our meals the next few nights. He made it once & I'm a big fan so he now makes it more often. It is always yummy. Even I could make this, Liza, which is one of the reasons I asked him what he puts in the slurry. I'll type it up sometime & put it in our cookbook. It goes really well with anything.
A few good things are happening with the women & they seem to be friendlier towards me. I played with 2 of the older women yesterday for something different. They were both friendly towards me. I have had the idea of getting a casual group of women together to play on occasional Saturdays & K, P & N are playing with me this week. It gives G a chance to play with his buddies & it's good to get more women joining in on club days. Hopefully, it will break down some of the barriers out there. I have offered a ride in my cart to another woman whose husband recently died & who hasn't been playing for months as it is a board event in honour of 2 life members, P & G. G was her best friend & one of my favourite women at the gold club. I hope she comes along as it will just get her back amongst the women, without having to worry about trying to play in the cold.
We have a full-on day today, with appointments for G (dentist & blood bank) & someone coming to interview us for an annual Australia-wide survey. We have been participating every year since its inception in 2001. We have tired of doing it & we had always said we would stop when B, who was lovely, retired but we got talked into continuing by his replacement. We will wait a few months before saying we're going to opt out so that she can't try to talk us out of it. If I could do it all online I would. She is just too intense for us. I won't mention anything about her though as we really have just had enough of all of the questions.
I slept well last night but do feel very tired. I am meant to be playing golf Saturday & Sunday but will pull out of Sunday if I feel exhausted on Saturday night.
It's raining out there & cold again. We have to leave soon....
I need a few days to hibernate. Tomorrow I am going nowhere & Mon & ......?
 
Wow, the pumpkin dish sounds amazing! I will try it when it is in season again here!! That's so nice that the golf club women are becoming more friendly and that you can start a nice group of women playing together on the weekend. I hope your day goes really well and that you have some lovely hibernation afterward. Hibernation sounds really good right about now...
 
Hi, M. The pumpkin dish is always delicious. It's based on a middle-eastern recipe that G saw in a magazine that comes with our newspaper. Our interviewer has been & gone & it was OK. Never say never. I think she has been nervous & has relaxed a bit more. We get paid to do it & it really doesn't take that long. I think I just changed my mind about saying no next year :)

I drove in my little car again today & while G was at the dentist & the blood bank I walked A. We were just about the only ones at the beach. I saw a young mother with a little boy, standing by the water's edge & they looked so sweet. She was gently nudging rocks closer to him with her foot & he was picking them up & throwing them into the waves. I watched them for a while & called out hi. I said I had something for her & briefly told her about making hearts & that I would like her to choose one as she seemed like such a good Mum. She picked one of my favourites & told me her name & her little boy's. She said she would pay my kindness forward & I said I thought she seemed like someone who would normally do that. She then said she always tells other mothers who seem to be struggling that they are doing a great job. She seemed like such a nice person. She also said it is such a battle these days with social media being so negative & it's lovely to encounter kindness. Yes! That's what I want.

After walking A I left him in the car for 10 mins while I went into an op (charity) shop. I bought a puffer jacket for golf, a rug (baby?) that has been embroidered with hearts & a small navy handbag for $12 all up & offered the guy serving me a heart & he chose a very bright heart that matched his very colourful top. He was incredibly cheerful.

Our interviewer had told me a couple of weeks ago that her daughter had been trying for years to get pregnant & at long last was. She was so excited & I had told her that I would make her daughter a heart. I had forgotten about it until this morning, but chose one I thought she would like & another for her daughter. I then mixed them up with about 6 others & she chose my 2. I just love it when this happens.
I'm having a rest in my chair with a pot of herbal tea, trying not to fall asleep.
 
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Nice you are feeling more connections with other women at the golf club. Would be great if it could turn into a place of good support for one another.
Lovely story about giving a heart to the mother at the beach. I bet that will really stick with her throughout her parenting years :)
 
I can picture you turning the little heart rug into a little purse to store all your hearts in and then going around town giving out hearts when the mood strikes you. You are making such a lovely tradition!!! And I agree about the encounter with the young mother. That's so heartwarming. I still really love how you silently wish for the person to get the heart you picture for them!

Glad the interviewer was more relaxed and that you got out and had fun shopping. Hope you had a relaxing evening. It sounds like it!
 
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